RIVERS  AND  HARBORS. 


SPEECH 

Of 

HON.  E.  G.  SPAULDING,  OF  NEW  YORK, 

DELIVERED 

IN  THE  HOUSE  OF  REPRESENTATIVES,  FRIDAY,  FEBRUARY  14,  1851, 


On  the  Bill  reported  from  the  Committee  on  Commerce ,  making  appropriations  for  the 

improvement  of  certain  Rivers  and  Harbors. 

•  .  » 


The  House  being  in  Committee  of  the  Whole  on  the  state 
of  the  Union,  (Mr.  Meade  in  the  chair,)  on  the  bill  making 
appropriations  for  the  improvement  of  rivers  and  harbors — 

Mr.  SPAULDING  said: 

Mr.  Chairman:  My  constituents  feel  a  deep  in¬ 
terest  in  this  question,  and  I  should  be  derelict  in 
duty  if  I  did  not  do  all  that  I  could  to  favor  its 
passage.  Sir,  not  only  are  my  constituents  inter¬ 
ested  in  this  subject,  but  the  Lake  region  generally 
-■ — the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  and  indeed  the 
whole  country.  It  is  a  bill  that  is  intended  to  ben¬ 
efit  the  North,  the  South,  the  East,  and  the  West, 
and  to  cement  more  closely  the  bond  of  union  be¬ 
tween  all  these  sections  of  the  country. 

Sir,  it  is  carrying  forward  a  system  of  improve¬ 
ments  that  was  commenced  under  General  Wash¬ 
ington  in  1789,  and,  with  some  modifications, 
continued  down  to  the  present  time.  It  has  been 
characterized  by  gentlemen  on  the  other  side  of  the 
House  as  intended  to  rob  the  Treasury — as  being 
intended  to  break  down  the  Treasury  of  the  coun¬ 
try  by  a  general  system  of  internal  improvements. 
The  gentleman  from  Louisiana  [Mr.  Morse]  has 
so  characterized  it.  He  says  it  is  calculated  to  up¬ 
root  the  foundations  of  government — that  it  is  not 
authorized  by  the  Constitution — that  it  is  local  and 
sectional  in  its  character,  and  that  for  these  and 
many  other  reasons  it  ought  not  to  pass.  Now, 
the  gentleman  from  Indiana,  [Mr.  Fitch,]  who 
has  just  taken  his  seat,  has,  in  my  opinion,  to  a 
great  extent,  answered  the  objections  of  the  gentle¬ 
man  from  Louisiana.  It  has  been  said,  also,  that 
this  was  not  a  Democratic  measure.  Sir,  I  agree 
with  the  gentleman  from  Indiana  that  this  bill  is 
not  the  creature  of  any  party,  or  of  any  section  of 
country;  it  is  emphatically  a  national  measure,  de¬ 
signed  for  the  benefit  of  the  whole  country,  with¬ 
out  reference  to  party.  I  can  prove  by  acts  of 
Congress',  conclusively,  that  this  system  of  internal 
improvements  had  its  origin  With  the  first  session 
of  Congress  under  the  Constitution;  that  provision 
was  made  by  that  very  Congress  similar  to  those 
contained  in  this  bill;  and  the  system  has  grown 
up  with  our  Government  from  that  time  to  the 
present  day. 


Sir,  previous  to  the  first  session  of  Congress,  in 
1789,  all  the  light-houses,  beacons,  buoys,  and 
ublic  piers  on  the  Atlantic  coast  and  the  harbors, 
ays,  and  inlets  of  the  several  States,  had  been  built 
and  maintained  by  such  States  respectively,  or  by 
the  local  authority  of  the  cities  and  towns  in  whicn 
they  were  situated.  On  the  adoption  of  the  Con¬ 
stitution,  the  separated  States  became  one  country , 
without  regard  to  State  lines,  for  great  national 
objects  specified  in  the  Constitution.  For  the 
common  good  of  all  the  States,  each  State  sur¬ 
rendered  a  portion  of  its  sovereignty  under  the 
Constitution  to  the  General  Government,  and 
expressly  prohibited  the  separate  States  from  exer¬ 
cising  certain  powers,  among  which  was  a  provis¬ 
ion  that“no  State,  withouttlieconsent  ofCongress, 
should  lay  any  duty  of  tonnage,”  and  “  vessels 
bound  to  or  from  one  State  shall  not  be  obliged  to 
enter,  clear,  or  pay  duties  in  another.” 

The  Constitution  expressly  confers  on  Congress 
the  power 

“To  lay  and  collect  taxes,  duties,  imposts,  and  excises, 
to  pay  the  debts  and  provide  for  the  common  defence  and 
general  welfare  of  the  United  States.” 

“  To  provide  and  maintain  a  Navy.” 

“  To  raise  and  support  armies.  ” 

“To  establish  post  offices  and  post  roads.” 

“  To  regulate  commerce  with  foreign  nations,  and  among 
the  several  States,  and  with  the  Indian  tribes.” 

“To  make  all  laws  which  shall  be  necessary  and  proper 
for  carrying  into  execution  the  foregoing  powers.” 

This  broad  power  “  to  provide  and  maintain  a 
Navy,”  confers  on  Congress  the  incidental  power 
to  establish  docks  and  navy-yards,  where  the  ships 
and  vessels  of  the  United  States  may  be  built;  to 
equip  and  man  them  when  built,  and  to  provide 
lights,  beacons,  buoys,  and  public  piers,  to  enable 
them  to  sail  along  the  coast,  and  enter  the  bays, 
harbors,  and  rivers  of  the  country  in  safety,  for 
purposes  of  defence  in  time  of  war,  and  at  all  times 
to  protect  our  commercial  marine.  The  United 
States  Government  is  also  bound  to  maintain  an 
Army  for  the  protection  of  the  whole  country,  and 
to  establish  post  offices  and  post  roads.  To  do 
this  effectually,  troops  and  munitions  of  war, 
as  well  as  the  mails,  must  be  transported  to  the 
remotest  corners  of  this  nation.  Good  roads,  ca- 


2 


nals,  harbors,  and  the  unobstructed  navigation  of 
rivers,  would  enable  the  Government  to  carry  the 
mails  with  dispatch  at  all  times,  and  in  case  of  war 
to  concentrate  promptly  and  cheaply,  troops  and 
supplies  to  any  point  that  might  be  menaced,  in 
sufficient  force  for  its  defence. 

So  much  for  the  powers  of  the  General  Govern¬ 
ment  to  aid  in  carrying  on  its  own  operations  to 
render  effective  the  Army  and  Navy  for  the  defence 
of  the  country,  and  to  facilitate  the  mail  service. 

But  the  other  power  conferred  on  Congress, 
viz:  “  to  regulate  commerce  with  foreign  nations 
and  among  the  several  States,”  is  sufficiently  broad 
to  cover  all  the  objects  embraced  in  this  bill,  and 
is  deemed  by  some  of  the  ablest  statesmen  of  the 
country  to  be  the  true  ground,  on  which  to  rest 
these  appropriations.  This  is  certainly  a  very 
broad  power,  and  at  the  Chicago  Convention,  in 
which  eighteen  States  were  repi*esented  without 
distinction  of  party,  it  was  unanimously  resolved 
that  this  grant  of  power  accompanied  by  cotem- 
poraneous  history  and  a  series  of  acts  which  have 
received  the  sanction  of  the  people  of  the  United 
States,  and  of  every  department  of  the  National 
Government,  was  sufficient  to  make  it  the  constitu¬ 
tional  duty  of  Congress  to  continue  this  system 
of  appropriations.  (See  House  doc.  No.  741, 
July  11,  1848,  p.  86.) 

This  power  “  to  regulate  commerce”  has  received 
a  liberal  and  beneficial  construction  by  all  the  de¬ 
partments  of  the  Government. 

The  Supreme  Court,  in  the  case  of  Gibbons  vs. 
Ogden,  (9  Wheaton’s  Reps.  p.  1,)  have  decided  that 
the  power  to  regulate  commerce  includes  the  power 
to  regulate  navigation  on  all  the  navigable  waters, 
bays,  lakes,  rivers,  and  harbors  throughout  the 
United  States,  without  any  restraint  or  hindrance 
by  State  legislation.  Honorable  A.  Conklin,  dis¬ 
trict  judge  for  the"northern  district  of  New  York, 
held  that  this  power  was  broad  enough  to  author¬ 
ize  Congress  to  pass  the  act  granting  admiralty 
jurisdiction  to  the  district  courts  upon  the  lakes 
and  navigable  rivers  connecting  the  same,  in  re¬ 
spect  to  all  steamboats  and  vessels  of  twenty  tons 
burden  and  upwards  employed  in  commerce  and 
navigation,  the  same  as  upon  the  high  seas.  (See 
Conklin’s  Admiralty  Practice.) 

Under  this  power  Congress  has  passed  laws  re¬ 
quiring  steamers  and  vessels  to  be  licensed  and 
registered — prescribing  their  tiller  ropes,  authoriz¬ 
ing  an  inspection,  and  requiring  a  lantern  to  be 
hung  at  their  bows.  Can  the  same  power  which 
prescribes  all  those  artifical  safeguards  for  the  pro¬ 
tection  of  lifeand  property, consistently  disclaim  all 
jurisdiction  over  the  natural  obstacles  and  dangers 
of  the  lakes  and  rivers  themselves? 

Sjr,  this  Government,  in  providing  for  “  the 
common  defence”  and  promoting  the  “general 
welfare”  of  the  United  States  “  as  one  country,” 
under  the  Constitution,  have  authorized  and  pros¬ 
ecuted  four  kinds  of  public  works  which  may  be 
classed  under  the  general  head  of  internal  improve¬ 
ments. 

1.  The  erection,  support,  and  maintenance  of 
light-houses,  light-ships,  beacons,  buoys, and  pub¬ 
lic  piers. 

2.  Theimprovements  of  the  navigation  of  rivers, 
lakes,  and  harbors. 

3.  Making  surveys  and  charts  to  guide  the  mari¬ 
ner  in  the  navigation  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific 
coasts,  gulfs*  bays,  harbors,  lakes,  and  rivers. 


4.  Roads  and  canals. 

These  improvements  are  necessary  to  enable 
the  Government  to  perform  its  own  appropriate 
functions,  and  were  so  considered  by  the  fathers 
of  the  Republic.  At  the  first  session  of  Congress 
at  New  York,  in  1789,  it  became  the  duty  of  its 
members  “  to  make  laws  necessary  and  proper  for 
carrying  into  execution  the  foregoing  powers,  and 
all  other  powers  vested  by  the  Constitution  in  the 
Government  of  the  United  States.”  Now,  what 
did  this  Congress  do?  What  laws  did  it  pass  to 
give  practical  effect  to  the  provisions  of  the  Consti¬ 
tution  ?  The  ninth  act  which  passed  this  Congress 
was  approved  by  George  Washington,  August  7, 
1789,  and  is  entitled  “  An  act  for  the  establish¬ 
ment  and  support  of  light-houses,  beacons,  buoys, 
and  public  piers.”  By  this  act  it  was  expressly 
provided — 

“  That  all  the  expenses  which  shall  accrue  from  and  after 
the  fifteenth  day  of  August,  1789,  in  the  necessary  support 
and  maintenance  and  repair  of  light-houses ,  beacons,  buoys 
and  public  piers,  erected,  placed,  or  sunk  before  the  passing 
of  this  act  at  the  entrance  of  or  within  any  bay,  inlet,  har¬ 
bor  or  port  of  the  United  States  for  rendering  the  navigation 
thereof  safe  and  easy,  shall  be  defrayed  out  of  the  Treasury 
of  the  United  States  :  Provided,  That  such  light-houses, 
beacons,  buoys,  and  public  piers,  shall  be  ceded  to  and 
vested  in  the  United  States,  by  the  State  or  States  in  which 
they  are  situated,  together  with  the  lands  and  tenements 
thereunto  belonging,  with  the  jurisdiction  of  the  same.” 

And  it  was  by  that  act  made  the  duty  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury  to  provide  by  contracts 
for  rebuilding  them  when  necessary,  and  for  fur¬ 
nishing  them  with  necessary  supplies;  and  also,  to 
agree  for  the  salaries,  wages,  or  hire  of  the  per¬ 
sons  appointed  for  the  superintendence  of  the 
same. 

By  this  act  of  the  first  Congress,  approved  by 
General  Washington,  the  United  States  assumed 
jurisdiction  and  control  over  all  the  light-houses, 
beacons,  buoys  and  public  piers  in  the  United 
States,  the  title  and  jurisdiction  of  which  should 
be  ceded  to  them  by  the  States  in  which  they  were 
situated.  They  were  placed  under  the  charge  of 
the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  and  the  faith  of  the 
Federal  Government  was  pledged  to  maintain  and 
support  them  forever  afterwards;  and  this  pledge, 
in  respect  to  the  light-house  establishment,  has 
been  kept  good  by  the  Government.  I  have  looked 
over  the  appropriation  bills  from  the  passage  of 
that  act  to  the  present  time,  embracing  a  period  of 
seventy  years,  and  find  that  in  every  year  there 
has  been  appropriations  not  only  for  those  for 
which  they  were  pledged  to  support,  but  for  all 
the  light-houses,  light-boats,  beacons,  buoys,  &c., 
i  that  have  since  been  authorized  by  law. 

The  first  Congress  also  made  it  the  duty  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  by  the  same  law,  to 
provide  by  contract  for  building  a  new  light-house 
near  the  entrance  of  the  Chesapeake  Bay.  At  the 
next  session  of  Congress,  in  1790,  he  was  author¬ 
ized  to  finish  the  light-house  on  Portland  Head, 
and  at  the  same  session  the  annual  appropriations 
'  in  the  civil  and  diplomatic  bill  were  commenced  for 
I  the  “  support  of  light-houses,  beacons,  buoys,  and 
public  piers,”  and  have  been  annually  continued, 
without  the  omission  of  a  single  year,  from  that 
time  to  the  present. 

These  appropriations  have  been  embraced  in  the 
general  appropriation  bills,  and  have  therefore  been 


3 


as  permanent  and  uniform  as  the  appropriations 
for  the  support  of  the  Government. 

LIGHT-HOUSE  ESTABLISHMENT. 


For  1790*  (estimated  amount) 


1791* . do . 

1792  the  amount  was . 

1793  . do . 

1794  . do . 

And  for  deficiency  in  1792  . 

For  1795  the  amount  was . 

1796  . .  do . 

1797  . do . 

1798  . do . 

1799  . do . 

1800  General  appropriation  bill 

1801  . do . 

1802  . do . 

1803  . do . 

1804  . do . 

1805  . do . 

1806  . do . 

1807  . do . 

1808  . do . 

1809  . do . 

1810..  . do . 

1811  . do . 

1812  . do . 

1813  . do . 

1814  . do . 

.1815 . do . 

1816  . do . 

1817  . do . 

1818  . #.do . 

1819  . do . 

1820  . ....do . 

1821  . do . 

1822  . do . 

1823  . do . 

1824  . do . 

1825  . do . 

1826  . do . 

1827  . do . 

1828  . do . 

1829  . do . 

1829. . . .5econd  do . 

1830  . do . 

1831  . do . 

1832  . do . 

1833  . do . 

1834  . do . 

1835  . do . 

1836  . do . 

1837  . do . 

1838  . do . 

1839  . do . 

1840  . do . 

1841  . do . 

1842  . do . 

1842  . Deficiency  bill . 

1843  General  appropriation  bill 

1844  . do . 

1845  . do . 

1846  . do . 

1847  . do . 

1848  . do . . 

1849  . do . 

1850  . do . 


; |15,000  00 
,  15,000  00 
16,000  00 
20,000  00 
,  20,000  00  ’ 

.  4,000  00 

.  24,000  00 
24,000  00 
47,769  14 
43,255  12 
44,281  08 
39,392  03 
38,622  70 
44,841  44 
50,970  82 
,  55,951  33 
115,209  36  | 
.  81,088  02 
,  83,961  08 
,  85,000  00 
.  79,039  40 
.  68,131  04 
.  68,965  39 
,  93,100  16 
.  99,349  15 
,  69,100  28 
24,299  11 
.  97,464  00 
.  73,493  33 
,  60,236  00 
74.362  27 
,  120,863  00 
.102,341  28 
.  91,531  30 
,102,441  65 
.109,774  33 
.117,485  85 
,  132,346  66 
.158,650  00 
,  166,444  00 
,  42,000  00 
,134,473  00 
,186,003  13 
,193,156  00 
205,778  00 
,231,850  00 
.251,726  71 
268,152  59 
,279,986  07 
,298,050  00  j 
356,863  00  | 
.394,331  00 
.431,987  26 
,484,072  00 
459,826  41 
.196,994  27 
,415,276  96 
.397,109  89 
.394,808  06 
.421,732  04 
.402.325  80 
.473,254  27 
.478,633  33 
.516,497  41 


*  The  exact  amount  appropriated  for  this  purpose  by  the 
act  of  August  12,  1790,  and  the  act  of  February  12,  1791, 
does  not  appear  in  the  acts  themselves,  but  appears  in  the 
accounts  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury. 

The  following  additional  light-houses,  beacons, 
&c.,  were  authorized  during  General  Washing¬ 
ton’s  administration  : 

In  1792,  appropriations  were  made  to  finish  the 
light-house  on  Bald  Head ,  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Cape  Fear  river;  floating  beacons  and  buoys  in 
the  harbor  of  Charleston,  South  Carolina;  three 
floating  beacons  in  the  Chesapeake  bay;  and  a 
light-house  on  Montauk  point.  In  1793,  a  bea¬ 
con  or  buoy  was  authorized  on  Smith’s  Point,  in 
the  Chesapeake  bay,  and  the  like  on  Royal  Shoal, 
near  Ocracoke  inlet.  In  1794- ’5- ’6  and  ’7,  Gen¬ 
eral  Washington  also  approved  bills  for  buoys  on 


the  rocks  off  New  London;  a  beacon  and  two 
buoys  in  the  harbor  of  Portsmouth;  light-house  at 
Cape  Hatteras;  a  lighted  beacon  on  Shellcastle 
Island,  North  Carolina;  light-house  near  the  Kene- 
beck  river;  a  beacon  and  three  buoys  at  the  en¬ 
trance  of  St.  Mary’s  river;  light-house  at  the  en¬ 
trance  of  the  harbor  of  Georgetown,  South  Caro¬ 
lina;  buoys  in  Cape  Fear  river;  light-house  oil 
Baker’s  Island,  near  Salem,  Massachusetts -v  light¬ 
house  on  Cape  Cod,  and  sixteen  buoys  in  Boston 
harbor. 

I  have  gone  into  this  detail  of  facts  for  the  pur¬ 
pose  of  proving  conclusively  that  the  practical  men 
during  Washington’s  administration,  conspicuous 
in  forming  the  Constitution,  and  who  gave  a  prac¬ 
tical  construction  to  it  during  the  first  eight  years 
after  its  adoption,  fully  established  the  principle  of 
making  appropriations  from  the  National  Treasury 
to  facilitate,  protect,  and  foster  the  commerce  and 
navigation  of  the  country. 

During  the  next  four  years,  from  1797  to  1801, 
this  system  was  carried  forward  under  the  admin¬ 
istration  of  John  Adams,  in  the  same  manner  as 
it  was  under  the  previous  administration  ofWasli- 
ington;new  light-houses, buoys  and  beacons  were 
authorized  and  the  annual  appropriations  were  con¬ 
tinued  in  the  general  appropriation  bill  for  the 
support  of  the  light-house  establishment. 

From  1801  to  1809,  Thomas  Jefferson,  who  is 
claimed  to  be  the  great  apostle  of  Democracy  and 
liberty,  was  at  the  head  of  the  Government.  The 
chairman  of  the  committee  who  reported  the  bill 
under  consideration,  [Mr.  McLane,]  alluded  very 
briefly  to  the  fact  that  Thomas  Jefferson,  the  great 
apostle  of  Democracy,  did  by  his  approval  of 
bills  for  internal  improvements,  support  this  sys¬ 
tem,  although  he  expressed  doubts  respecting  its 
constitutionality.  But  in  order  to  bring  this  mat¬ 
ter  more  clearly  to  the  committee,  I  take  the  lib¬ 
erty  of  referring  to  some  facts  connected  with  his 
Administration.  He  is,  however,  regarded  as  good 
authority  on  all  doubtful  constructions  of  the  Con¬ 
stitution.  Although,  in  one  of  his  messages,  he 
thinks  it  desirable  that  there  should  be  an  amend 
ment  of  the  Constitution,  giving  more  enlarged 
powers  on  this  subject,  to  make  expenditures 
“  within  the  States yet  in  every  year  he  approved 
bills  for  some  or  all  of  these  works  of  internal  im¬ 
provement.  In  each  year  he  approved  the  an¬ 
nual  appropriation  bill  for  the  support  of  the  light¬ 
house  establishment.  He  also  approved  bills  for 
the  erection  of  new  light-houses,  beacons,  buoys, 
and  public  piers. 

Mr.  BURT,  (interrupting.)  Will  the  gentle¬ 
man  from  New  York  allow  me  to  make  a  single 
remark  ? 

Mr.  SPAULDING.  Certainly. 

Air.  BURT.  If  the  gentleman  addressed  his 
remarks  to  me,  I  have  only  to  ask  him  if  he  has 
read  the  messages  of  Jefferson? 

Air.  SPAULDING.  I  have. 

Air.  BURT.  I  will  ask  the  gentleman  if  he  has 
read  the  message  of  1806  ? 

Air.  SPAULDING.  I  have.  [Laughter.] 

Air.  BURT.  Then  I  ask  the  gentleman  from 
N ew  York  if,  after  reading  that  message,  he  makes 
the  statement  which  he  has  just  made  to  this 
committee? 

Air.  SPAULDING.  Ido.  [Great  laughter.] 

Air.  BURT.  Then  I  have  nothing  further  to 
say. 


4 


Mr.  SPAULDING.  I  will  say  to  the  gen¬ 
tleman  from  South  Carolina,  [Mr.  Burt,]  that  I 
stated  at  the  commencement  of  my  remarks  that 
Mr.  Jefferson  questioned  the  constitutionality  of 
making  these  appropriatians;  yet  while  he  was 
questioning  this  power  he  approved  three  very 
important  bills  to  carry  forward  the  great  system 
of  internal  improvements  for  which  we  are  now 
contending.  I  look  to  his  public  and  official  acts 
for  a  just  exposition  of  his  principles,  and  espe¬ 
cially  to  his  views  respecting  those  works  of  na¬ 
tional  importance  in  which  more  than  one  State  has 
a  common  interest.  Sir,  gentlemen  may  write 
messages,  make  speeches,  pass  resolutions,  and 
even  give  pledges  as  to  their  principles  and  course 
of  future  action,  but,  after  all,  the  best  test  of 
fidelity  of  any  man  to  his  principles  is  his  official 
votes,  and  the  signature  of  the  President  to  the  bills 
that  are  made  the  law  of  the  land  by  such  official 
acts.  I  will  therefore  refer  to  the  acts  of  Con¬ 
gress,  passed  during  Mr.  Jefferson’s  administra¬ 
tion,  to  ascertain  what  principles  were  established 
by  him. 

At  the  first  session  of  Congress  after  his  inaugu¬ 
ration,  an  act  was  passed  authorizing  the  erection 
of  “  certain  light-houses,  and  for  other  purposes.” 
The  first  section  of  this  act.  authorizes  the  Secre¬ 
tary  of  the  Treasury  “  to  purchase  for  the  use  of 
‘  the  United  States  the  land  whereon  stood  the 
‘  light-house  on  Gurnet  Point,  and  so  much  land 

*  adjoining  thereto  as  may  be  sufficient  for  vaults 
‘  and  any  other  purposes  necessary  for  the  better 
‘  support  of  said  light-house.” 

The  second  section  authorizes  the  Secretary  of 
the  Treasury  to  rebuild  the  light-house  on  Gurnet 
Point,  at  the  entrance  of  Plymouth  harbor. 

The  third  section  authorizes  him  to  rebuild  the 
light-house  on  Newcastle  Island,  at  the  entrance  of 
Piscataqua  river. 

The  fourth  section  authorizes  him  to  cause  to  be 
erected  a  light-house  on  Lynd’s  Point,  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Connecticut  river. 

The  fifth  section  authorizes  “proper  light-houses 

*  to  be  built.,  and  buoys  to  be  placed  in  the  stations 
‘  necessary  for  the  navigation  of  Long  Island 
‘  Sound:  Provided,  That  sufficient  land  for  the  ac- 
‘  commodation  of  such  light-houses  can  be  pur- 
‘  chased  at  a  reasonable  price;  and  that  the  Legis- 
‘  latures  of  Rhode  Island,  Connecticut,  and  New 
‘York  shall  respectively  cede  the  jurisdiction  over 
‘  the  same  to  the  United  States.” 

The  sixth  section  authorizes  a  “  sufficient  light¬ 
house”  to  be  erected  on  Cumberland  Island,  at 
the  mouth  of  St.  Mary’s  river,  in  Georgia. 

The  seventh  section  appropriates  $21,270  to  ac¬ 
complish  the  objects  specified  in  the  preceding 
sections. 

Tile  eighth  section  is  in  these  words: 

“  Sec.  8.  Andhe  it  further  enacted,  That  if  shall  be  law¬ 
ful  for  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury,  under  the  direction 
of  the  President  of  the  United  States,  to  cause  to  beexpend- 
edin- repairing  and  erecting  public  piers  in  the  river  Del¬ 
aware,  a  sum  not  exceeding  $30,000,  and  that  the  same  be 
/  paid  out  of  any  money  in  the  Treasury  not  otherwise  appro¬ 
priated  :  Provided,  That  the  jurisdiction  of  the  site  where 
any  such  piers  may  be  erected  shall  be  first  ceded  to  the 
United  States,  according  to  the  conditions  in  such  case  by 
law  provided. 

“  Approved  April  6,  1802.  TH.  JEFFERSON.” 

So,  sir,  it  will  be  seen  that  Mr.  Jefferson,  as 
early  as  1802,  approved  a  bill  in  principle  essentially 
like  the  harbor  and  river  bill  now  under  considera¬ 
tion.  Sir,  six  distinct  objects,  extending  from 


1  Massachusetts  to  Georgia,  are  embraced  in  this 
|  bill.  It  is  what  my  friend  from  Louisiana  [Mr. 
Morse]  wo.uld  call  a  “  log-rolling”  bill,  and  yet 
there  can  be  no  doubt  each  object  is  of  national 
importance;  and  I  think  Mr.  Jefferson  was  clearly 
right  in  approving  it,  and  that  he  forfeited  none  of 
his  claims  upon  the  Democracy  for  this  official  act. 

But,  sir,  this  is  not  all.  Mr.  Jefferson  enlarged 
and  extended  the  system  of  internal  improvement 
beyond  the  limit  it  had  been  carried  under  Wash¬ 
ington  and  Adams. 

CUMBERLAND  ROAD. 

On  the  29th  March,  1806,  Mr.  Jefferson  ap¬ 
proved  the  bill  for  the  commencement  of  the  Cum¬ 
berland  road,  from  Cumberland,  in  the  State  of 
Maryland,  across  Pennsylvania  and  a  part  of  Vir¬ 
ginia,  to  Ohio,  and  the  sum  of  $30,000  was  appro¬ 
priated  to  commence  the  work.  Since  that  time 
(including  the  sum  appropriated  by  that  bill)  no 
less  than  $1,921,227  81  has  been  appropriated  to 
complete  this  road  from  Cumberland  to  the  Ohio 
river  at  Wheeling.  For  the  continuation  of  this 
road  west  of  Wheeling  through  the  State  of  Ohio, 

!  $2,081,008  36  has  been  appropriated.  Forthecon- 
!  tinuation  of  the  same  through  Indiana,  $1,135,000; 
and  for  its  continuance  through  the  State  of  Illi¬ 
nois,  $746,000;  making  in  all  th^um  of  $5,883,- 
236  17. 

In  Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Illinois,  it  is  usually  called 
the  “  national  road;”  being  of  national  importance 
for  the  intercourse  between  our  citizens  east  and 
west  of  the  Alleghany  mountains,  and  the  easy 
and  rapid  transmission  of  the  mails,  I  trust,  sir, 
that  the  Democracy  will  not  repudiate  their  great 
apostle  for  commencing  an  important  national  work 
requiring  so  large  an  expenditure. 

In  1807,  Congress  passed  an  act  making  pro¬ 
vision  for  surveying  the  coast  of  the  United  States, 
and  made  an  appropriation  of  $50,000  for  that 
purpose.  It  was  approved  on  the  10th  of  Febru¬ 
ary,  1807,  by  Mr.  Jefferson.  The  bill  authorized 
the  survey  of  all  the  harbors  and  inlets  on  the 
coast  of  the  United  States  within  twenty  leagues 
of  the  coast.  Now,  what  was  the  object  of  this 
bill  ?  It  was  for  the  express  purpose  of  favoring 
the  commercial  interests  of  the  United  States,  and 
by  the  fourth  section,  $50,000  was  appropriated 
for  that  purpose.  Now,  this  system  of  surveying 
the  coast,  harbors,  and  lakes,  commenced  at  this 
time,  and  since  that  time  an  appropriation  has  been 
made  almost  yearly — last  year  an  appropriation 
was  made  for  the  coast  survey. 

Now,  then,  I  will  go  further;  I  will  go  so  far  as 
to  say  that  Mr.  Calhoun — of  whose  memory  I 
speak  with  entire  respect — in  a  report  made 
whilst  Secretary  of  War,  under  the  Administra¬ 
tion  of  the  illustrious  Monroe,  in  the  year  1819, 
went  so  far  as  to  express  himself  in  favor  of  the 
construction  of  roads  and  canals. 

On  the  4th  April,  1818,  the  House  of  Repre¬ 
sentatives  passed  a  resolution  instructing  Mr.  Cal¬ 
houn,  then  Secretary  of  War,  to  report  at  the 
next  session  “a  plan  for  the  application  of  such 
means  as  are  within  the  power  of  Congress  for 
the  purpose  of  opening  such  roads  and  canals  as 
may  desBrve  and  require  the  aid  of  Government,” 
&c.  In  his  report  he  says: 

“A  judicious  system  of  roads  and  canals  constructed  for 
the  convenience  of  commerce  and  the  transportation  of  the 
mail  only,  without  any  reference  to  military  operations,  is 
itself  among  the  most  efficient  means  for  the  more  complete 
defence  of  the  United  Slates.  Without  adverting  to  the 


5 


fact  that  the  roads  and  canals  which  such  a  system  would 
require,  are,  with  few  exceptions,  precisely  those  which 
would  be  required  for  the  operations  of  war,  such  a  system, 
by  consolidating  the  Union,  increasing  our  wealth  and  fiscal 
capacity,  would  add  greatly  to  our  resources  in  war.”  *  * 
u  Thus  circumstanced,  it  is  the  duty  of  Government  to  ren¬ 
der  it  as  secure  as  possible.” 

These  were  sound  views  expressed  by  Mr. 
Calhoun  at  that  time.  I  respectfully  commend 
the  whole  of  that  able  report  to  the  gentleman 
from  South  Carolina,  [Mr.  Burt.] 

These  appropriations  were  continued  during  the 
administrations  of  Madison,  Monroe,  and  John 
Q..  Adams,  down  to  the  inauguration  of  General 
Jackson,  March  4,  1829.  At  the  first  session  of 
Congress  under  General  Jackson’s  administration, 
a  harbor  and  river  bill  was  passed  containing  ap¬ 
propriations  for  twenty-two  separate  objects,  sim¬ 
ilar  in  principle  and  detail,  to  the  bill  now  before 
the  committee.  This  bill  was  approved  by  Presi¬ 
dent  Jackson  April  23,  1830;  and  during  his  ad¬ 
ministration  he  also  approved  the  following  harbor 
and  river  bills: 

On  the  2d  March,  1833,  a  bill  containing  appro¬ 
priations  for  thirty-one.  separate  works.  On  the  2d 
March,  1833,  a  bill  for  improving  the  navigation 
of  certain  rivers  in  Florida  and  Michigan.  In  this 
bill  is  an  item  of  “  $5,000  for  improving  the  navi¬ 
gation  of  Choctawhachie  river  for  the  transportation 
of  the  mails  from  Pensacola  to  Tallahassee.”  And 
on  the  same  day  he  approved  the  harbor  and  river 
bill,  containing  thirty -two  separate  items.  On  the 
28th  June,  1834,  he  also  approved  the  harbor  and 
river  bill  for  that  year,  containing  thirty-three  sep¬ 
arate  works;  and  on  the  30  th  of  the  same  month  a 
separate  bill  for  the  Hudson  river  alone,  appropria¬ 
ting  $70,000.  On  the  30th  March,  1835,  he  also 
approved  the  harbor  and  river  bill  of  that  year, 
containing  twenty-one  separate  items;  on  the  2d 
July,  1836,  the  harbor  and  river  bill,  containing 
thirty-nine  separate  works;  and  on  the  last  night  of 
General  Jackson’s  official  life  he  approved  three 
bills  in  which  the  following  sums  were  appropri¬ 
ated: 


In  the  river  and  harbor  bill . $1,917,188  00 

For  the  Cumberland  and  other  roads .  227,496  63 

Light-house  bill .  721,694  00 

Annual  expenses  of  light-houses,  &c.,  for  the 
year  1837,  contained  in  the  general  appropri¬ 
ation  bill .  311,255  00 

Coast  Survey .  60,000  00 


$3,237,633  63 

Approved  by  General  Jackson,  March  3, 1837. 

Sir,  President  Polk,  in  his  veto  message,  which 
has  been  so  much  lauded  by  the  gentleman  from 
Louisiana,  [Mr.  Morse,]  has  made  the  unfounded 
statement  that  it  required  the  strong  arm  of  Gen¬ 
eral  Jackson  to  arrest  the  extravagance  of  these 
appropriations,  which  had  grown  up  under  the 
administration  of  John  Q,uincy  Adams;  and  yet 
the  facts  show  that  the  system  was  greatly  extend¬ 
ed  during  General  Jackson’s  administration  be¬ 
yond  that  of  Mr.  Adams,  the  same  as  it  was  during 
Mr.  Jefferson’s  administration  beyond  that  of 
Washington  and  the  elder  Adams. 

The  appropriations  during  the  four  years  of  John 
Q,.  Adams’s  administration  were.. .  .$2,310,475 

Andrew  Jackson’s  eight  years . 10,582,882 

Sir,  I  am  well  aware  that  General  Jackson  ve¬ 
toed  the  Maysville  road  bill  on  the  ground  that  it 
was  a  local  work;  but  that  had  no  reference  to 
these  great  works  of  national  importance;  and  the 


best  evidence  we  have  that  General  Jackson  had 
not  changed  his  views  in  respect  to  works  of  a 
national  character  is,  that  after  that  veto,  and  among 
the  very  last  of  his  official  acts,  he  approved  bills 
of  this  kind  appropriating  the  large  sum  of  $3,237,- 
633  63. 

Sir,  Mr.  Van  Buren  promised  to  walk  in  the 
footsteps  of  his  “illustrious  predecessor;”  but, 
sir,  his  foot  was  not  long  enough,  nor  broad 
enough,  to  cover  the  whole  ground  occupied  by 
General  Jackson.  He  did,  however,  in  the  first 
year  of  his  administration,  make  a  very  fair  at¬ 
tempt  to  redeem  his  pledge,  so  far  as  it  related  to 
internal  improvements.  At  the  first  session  of 
Congress  under  Mr.  Van  Buren ’s  administration, 
a  river  and  harbor  bill  was  passed,  and  approved 
by  Mr.  Van  Buren  July  7,  1838,  appropria¬ 
ting . $1,489,507  53 

Bill  for  Red  river  raft .  70,000  00 

Cumberland  Road,  8cc .  459,000  00 

Roads  in  Florida .  37,300  00 

do.  in  Wisconsin .  44,000  00 

For  light-house  establishment,  contained  in  the 

general  appropriation  bill .  356,863  00 

Coast  survey,  do.  do .  90,000  00 

Light  house  bill,  for  new  light-houses,  Stc. . .  340,395  33 

First  year  of  Mr.  Van  Buren’s  administration.  $2, 887, 065  89 

No  further  river  and  harbor  bill  was  passed  du¬ 
ring  Mr.  Van  Buren’s  administration.  The  sys¬ 
tem  was  arrested,  and  in  1839-’40,  the  tools, 
machinery,  materials,  &c.,  then  on  hand  to  com¬ 
plete  the  works  in  progress  on  the  lakes,  were  sold 
at  a  great  loss,  and  the  system  of  harbor  and  river 
improvements  to  a  great  extent  abandoned. 

During  Mr.  Tyler’s  administration  only  one 
harbor  and  river  bill  received  his  approval,  which 
was  June  11,  1844.  After  the  passage  of  this  bill 
there  was  a  partial  resumption  of  the  works; 
but  during  that  year  Mr.  Polk  was  elected  Presi¬ 
dent,  which  put  an  end  to  all  hope  of  accomplish¬ 
ing  anything  during  his  administration.  It  is 
true  that  Congress  endeavored  to  do  its  duty  by 
passing  river  and  harbor  bills,  but  in  every  in¬ 
stance  President  Polk  either  vetoed  or  pocketed 
the  bills,  and  thus  one  man  was  able  to  thwart  the 
popular  will  and  stop  all  these  important  works. 

From  an  able  and  interesting  report,  made  at 
St.  Louis,  by  Thomas  Allen,  Esq.,  one  of  the 
executive  committee  of  the  Chicago  Convention, 
many  facts  were  Stated  which  are  very  important 
in  showing  how  much  was  lost  to  the  country  by 
arresting  these  works  in  this  arbitrary  manner. 
I  am  indebted  to  this  report  for  the  following 
facts: 

“  Prior  to  1838  six  steam  snag  boats  had  been  cons¬ 
tructed,  at  an  average  cost  for  each  of  about  $25,000 — 
for  six  boats  $150,000.  During  the  same  period  eight  or 
nine  small  steam  boats  belonging  to  the  Government  were 
etnployed  in  the  same  service.  One  hundred  thousand 
dollars  was  appropriated  by  Congress  {  for  building  and 
repairing  the  necessary  boats  and  for  carrying  on  the 
improvement  of  the  Missouri,  Mississippi,  Ohio  and  Arkan¬ 
sas  rivers.’  Captain  John  W.  Russell  was  appointed  the 
agent  of  the  United  States,  and  the  boats  having  been  re¬ 
paired  at  St.  Louis,  the  work  of  removing  snags  was  recom¬ 
menced  in  December  of  that  year,  and  continued  until 
April  17,  1843,  when  they  were  suspended  by  high  water, 
but  resumed  in  August  following.  Congress  appropriated 
for  the  eighteen  months  ending  June  30,  1844,  $50,0C0,  up 
to  which  time  the  works  were  continued.” 

Soon  after  this,  the  Administration  was  changed 
by  the  election  and  inauguration  of  James  K. 
Polk.  Congress  continued  to  do  its  duty  by 
passing  the  necessary  appropriation  bills,  but  the 
President  interposed  his  veto.  All  these  valu- 


6 


able  improvements  upon  the  western  rivers  were 
stopped,  and  the  snag  boats  sold  at  a  sacrifice. 

Colonel  Long,  of  the  corps  of  Topographical 
Engineers,  estimates  the  cost  of  constructing  a 
snag-boat,  to  be  used  upon  the  Mississippi  and  its 
branches,  at  $25,000,  exclusive  of  rigging,  tools, 
and  other  equipments.  The  estimated  cost  of 
working  them,  as  follows: 

Employment  of  four  snag-boats  nine  months,  at 


$2,160  per  month  each  boat .  $77,760 

Repairs  and  outfits  of  the  same,  &  c .  6,000  j 

Employment  of  two  steam  machine-boats,  nine 

months,  at  $1,100  per  month  each  boat .  19,800 

Repairs,  &.c.,  of  the  same .  3,000 

Construction  of  two  small  steam- boats,  or  trans¬ 
ports,  of  light  draught,  to  serve  as  tow-boats,  ten¬ 
ders,  &c.,  in  the  service,  at  $8,000  each .  16,000 


Employment  of  same  nine  months,  at  $800  per 

month .  14,400 

Amount  for  four  snag  boats,  nine  months  service.  .$136,960 

These  boats  were  of  simple  construction,  yet  of 
sufficient  power  to  remove  the  most  formidable 
snags  in  the  Mississippi  river  with  facility  in  a  few 
minutes.  The  boats  then  in  use  having  been  sold, 
it  will  be  necessary  to  construct  new  boats  to  carry 
on  the  improvements  in  the  Western  rivers. 

Sir,  the  suspension  of  this  great  system  of  in¬ 
ternal  improvements,  and  the  consequent  loss  of 
life  and  property,  and  the  damage  sustained  by  our 
commerce,  admonishes  us  of  the  necessity  of 
resuming  these  important  improvements,  and  of 
making  the  system  as  permanent  as  the  Govern¬ 
ment  itself.  The  appropriations  should  be  as  reg¬ 
ular  as  the  annual  appropriations  for  the  support 
of  Government;  and  I  do  not  see  the  least  objec¬ 
tion  to  putting  the  appropriations  for  the  continu¬ 
ance  of  all  works,  heretofore  authorized  by  law,  in 
the  general  appropriation  bill. 

Sir,  the  appropriations  should  not  only  be  an¬ 
nually  made  until  the  improvements  are  fully  com¬ 
pleted,  but  they  should  afterwards  remain  under 
the  constant  supervision  of  some  competent  agent 
of  the  Government,  to  maintain  and  keep  them  in 
repair. 

When  any  light-house,  pier,  or  breakwater  is 
constructed  on  the  borders  of,  or  within,  any  State, 
the  title  and  jurisdiction  of  the  land  upon  which 
each  improvement  is  made  should  be  ceded  to  the 
United  States,  so  that  the  Government  shall  not  j 
only  have  the  right  to  the  possession,  but  the  ab-  i 
solute  responsibility  and  duty  of  keeping  and 
maintaining  them  in  good  repair  and  condition,  to 
answer  the  purposes  for  which  the  improvements 
were  made.  As  to  all  new  works,  I  think  it  would 
be  desirable  that  they  should  be  commenced  in 
separate  bills,  as  heretofore  proposed  by  the  Hon. 
J.  A.  Dix,  in  order  to  secure  a  thorough  examin¬ 
ation,  to  ascertain  beforehand  that  the  work  pro¬ 
posed  is  of  sufficient  national  importance  to  war¬ 
rant  Congress  in  assuming  jurisdiction  and  control 
over  it,  as  a  Government  work,  before  it  is  adopted  j 
as  such.  To  elucidate  these  views  more  fully,  I  j 
will  take  a  practical  illustration.  The  improve-  i 
ment  of  the  St.  Clair  Flats  is  of  sufficient  national 
importance  to  enforce  upon  the  General  Govern¬ 
ment  the  duty  of  immediately  deepening  and  im¬ 
proving  the  channel  in  a  manner  sufficient  to  make 
the  navigation  safe  and  easy  through  this  thorough¬ 
fare  of  commerce.  This  duty  is  not  only  admit¬ 
ted  by  all  the  people  of  the  seven  States  bordering 
upon  this  obstructed  channel,  but  it  is  recom¬ 
mended  by  Government  officers  who  have  made 


an  examination  and  report  on  this  subject.*  The 
proposed  improvement  has  never  been  adopted  be 
Congress,  and  no  appropriation  has  as  yet  been 
made.  It  now  comes  before  us  as  a  new  improve¬ 
ment,  to  be  adopted  as  a  national  work.  We  go 
through  all  the  forms  of  passing  a  law  authorizing 
the  improvement  to  be  made,  and  we  propose  to 
appropriate  the  sum  of  $40,000  to  commence  the 
work.  To  make  the  adoption  by  the  United 
States  effectual,  so  that  its  duty  be  fully  discharged, 
let  us  provide  in  the  same  law  that  the  sum  of 
$20,000  shall  be  appropriated  annually,  until  there 
shall  be  a  navigable  channel  through  the  entire  bar 
sufficient  to  pass  all  the  vessels  navigating  these 
waters,  and  the  work  is  fully  completed.  The 
appropriations  may  then  be  continued  from  year 
to  year  in  the  general  appropriation  bills  till  the 
work  is  finished.  This  would  give  permanency 
to  the  system,  and  without  that  the  labor  and  ma¬ 
terials  of  one  Administration  is  liable  to  be  lost 
by  the  caprice  or  party  prejudice  of  the  one  which 
succeeds  it. 

I  trust  I  shall  be  pardoned  by  the  committee  if 
I  make  some  allusion  to  the  harbor  within  my  own 
district,  and  in  which  I  feel  an  especial  interest. 
The  harbor  at  Buffalo  is  of  great  national  import¬ 
ance.  It  is  the  principal  commercial  depot  of  the 
great  valley  of  the  lakes  above  Niagara  Falls;  the 
great  mart  and  port  of  transhipment  for  at  least 
eight  of  the  northwestern  States  and  Territories, 
and  the  western  terminus  of  the  Erie  Canal,  three 
hundred  and  sixty-five  miles  in  length,  connecting 
these  lakes  with  Hudson  river.  It  was  made  a 
port  of  entry  and  a  collection  district  by  act  of 
Congress  in  1805,  and  has  since  that  time  been 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  United  States. 

The  land  for  light-house,  &c.,  was  deeded  to  the 
United  States  in  1819.  The  aggregate  value  of 
the  property  shipped  east  and  west  through  the 
|  port  of  Buffalo  alone,  during  the  last  season,  was 
about  $70,000,000 — equal  to  one  half  the  entire 
foreign  export  trade  of  the  whole  Union.  The 
total  number  of  arrivals  and  departures  was  eight 
thousand  four  hundred  and  forty-four,  and  the 
|  tonnage  of  the  same,  two  million  seven  hundred 
and  thirteen  thousand  seven  hundred.  No  appro¬ 
priation  for  this  harbor  has  been  made  since  1844. 
The  Government  pier,  which  protects  the  entrance, 
and  resting  on  land  belonging  to  the  United  States, 
has  been  greatly  damaged  by  storms.  The  severe 
gale  which  occurred  in  1844,  broke  through  the 
pier,  and  it  has  only  been  partially  repaired. 


*The  late  Captain  Williams,  of  the  Topographical  Corps 
of  Engineers,  who  made  an  examination  in  1841,  says: 

“  Another  point  of  great  interest  is  the  obstruction  to 
navigation  at  the  mouth  of  the  St.  Clair  river.  The  river 
forms  a  delta,  having  three  principal  outlets — the  north, 
middle,  and  south  channels — and  one  or  more  intermediate 
passages.  The  general  thoroughfare  at  present  is  by  the 
north  channel,  the  middle  channel  not  having  sufficient 
water  on  the  bar  for  the  draught  of  steamboats  and  the 
larger  class  of  lake  vessels.  By  a  cut  through  of  no  great 
length,  (by  dredging,1)  a  channel  may  be  effected,  it  is 
thought,  and  a  distance  saved  of  upwards  of  si  x  miles.  *  * 

“  The  importance  of  some  improvements  being  made  here 
to  facilitate  commercial  operations  cannot  be  too  strongly 
recommended.  I  will  repeat  the  remarks  alluded  to  :  ‘That 
£  vessels  are  frequently  detained  here,  and  that  steamboats 
‘  have  to  be  lightened  of  a  portion  of  their  cargoes  before 
‘  they  are  enabled  to  pass  over  the  bar.  A  small  expense 
‘  would  obviate  the  difficulty  and  facilitate  a  thoroughfare 
1  of  commerce,  having  for  its  object  the  intercourse  be- 
‘  tween  the  waters  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  great  emporia 
‘  of  our  northeastern  States,  and  all  the  great  interests  bor- 
‘  dering  on  this  channel  of  communication.’  ” 


7 


Since  that  time,  it  is  no  uncommon  sight  to  see 
half  a  dozen  loaded  vessels  sticking  fast  on  the  bars, 
which  have  been  forming  around  the  light-house  at 
the  end  of  the  Government  pier,  at  the  mouth  of 
the  harbor.  The  appropriation  contained  in  the 
bill  for  this  harbor  is  only  $50,000.  This  is  but  a 
small  item  when  compared  with  the  extent  of  its 
commerce,  and  the  relation  it  bears  to  all  the  other 
harbors  upon  the  lakes.  1  would  by  no  means 
desire  to  diminish  the  amounts  for  the  other  ports; 
but  rather  that  the  amount  for  Buffalo  should  be 
increased.  I  am  gratified  to  see  that  Oswego  and 
Rochester,  important  ports  upon  Lake  Ontario, 
are  provided  for  in  the  bill;  and  that  Dunkirk, 
Erie,  Cleveland,  Sandusky,  Milwaukie,  and  Chi* 
cage,  have  not  been  overlooked. 

In  1834,  the  appropriation  for  the  Hudson  river 
was  in  a  separate  bill;  but  as  it  is  the  great  chan¬ 
nel  through  which  is  transported  the  principal  im¬ 
ports  to,  and  exports  from,  the  lake  region,  as 
well  as  Upper  Canada,  I  trust  that  the  item  of 
$75,000  for  this  river,  contained  in  it,  is  not  now 
in  the  “  wrong  bill.”  On  looking  at  the  items  for 
the  Valley  of  the  Mississippi,  I  see  in  the  bill,  for 
the  Ohio  river,  above  the  Falls,  $80,000,  and  be¬ 
low  these  Falls,  at  Cumberland  Island,  $50,000; 
and  for  the  Mississippi,  Missouri,  and  Arkansas 
rivers,  $240,000.  I  also  see  that  the  bill  contains 
appropriations  for  the  ports  on  the  Atlantic  coast 
and  Gulf  of  Mexico.  Indeed,  I  may  say  that  all 
sections  of  the  country  seem  to  have  been  fairly 
considered  by  the  committee;  and  although  I 
should  be  gratified  to  see  some  of  the  items  in¬ 
creased,  yet  I  fully  believe  the  committee  have 
done  what  was  for  the  best,  and  I  hope  the  bill 
will  pass. 

The  revenues  derived  from  commerce  were,  upon 
the  adoption  of  the  Constitution,  surrendered  to 
the  General  Government,  “  to  provide  for  the  com¬ 
mon  defence,  to  promote  the  general  welfare,  and 
to  secure  the  blessings  of  liberty  to  ourselves  and 
our  posterity.”  The  Government  collect  large 
revenues  on  imports  at  the  several  ports  embraced 
in  this  bill.  While  thus  enjoying  the  revenues 
derived  from  commerce,  there  must  be  a  reciprocal 
duty  on  the  part  of  the  Government,  to  facilitate, 
protect,  and  foster  the  hand  that  supplies  it  with 
the  means  of  support. 

In  the  last  year  of  General  Jackson’s  adminis¬ 
tration  the  appropriations  to  these  objects  were 
over  $3,000,000,  and  in  the  first  year  of  Mr.  Van 
Buren’s  administration  they  were  rather  less  than 
$3,000,000;  but  theaverage  of  these  two  years  was 
about  $3,000,000. 

In  resuming  these  works  again,  it  seems  to  me 
that  if  the  Government  were  pledged  to  expend 
$3,000,000  annually  for  ten  years  in  a  systematic 
and  vigorous  prosecution  of  these  works,  it  would 
not  only  be  a  great  saving  of  time  and  money  over 
the  former  mode  of  prosecuting  them,  but  would 
add  greatly  to  the  facility  and  protection  of  com¬ 
merce;  to  the  defence  of  the  country,  by  enabling 
it  to  transport  men  and  munitions  of  war;  facili¬ 
tate  the  intercourse  of  our  citizens, and  the  speedy 
transmission  of  the  mails. 

In  reply  to  the  suggestionof  the  gentleman  from 
Louisiana,  [Mr.  Morse,]  that  to  pass  bills  like 
these  will  tend  to  weaken  the  bonds  of  the  Union, 
I  take  leave  most  respectfully  to  dissent  from  that 
opinion.  I  believe  that  every  dollar  expended  in 
perfecting  this  system  of  internal  improvements 


will  have  the  contrary  effect  from  that  predicted 
by  the  gentleman  from  Louisiana.  Sir,  the  con¬ 
struction  of  the  Cumberland  Road,  extending,  as 
it  does,  from  Maryland,  through  Pennsylvania, 
Virginia,  Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Illinois,  has  greatly 
increased  the  commerce  and  intercourse  between 
Baltimore  and  the  great  West,  and  Baltimore  has 
been  much  benefited  by  the  increased  trade  and 
business  that  has  been  drawn  to  it,  It  has  in¬ 
creased  the  facility  of  the  mail  service,  and  has 
increased  the  attachment  of  the  people,  east  and 
west  of  the  mountains,  in  all  the  States  through 
which  this  road  passes. 

Sir,  the  Mississippi  and  its  tributaries,  extend¬ 
ing  through  the  whole  valley  of  the  Mississippi, 
forming  twenty  thousand  miles  of  navigable  com¬ 
munication,  and  finding  an  outlet  in  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico,  improved,  as  it  must  be,  by  the  General 
Government,  will  forever  bind  all  that  immense 
region  together  by  kindred,  by  social  intercourse, 
and  by  commercial  relations.  They  all  have  a 
common  interest  in  its  waters,  and  in  its  free 
and  unobstructed  navigation  from  its  sources  to 
its  mouth.  No  line  east  and  west  across  the  val¬ 
ley  of  the  Mississippi  ever  should  be  allowed  to 
separate  a  people  bound  together  by  so  many  cords 
of  interest  ana  attachment,  and  I  trust  and  believe 
that  no  such  line  ever  will  be  drawn. 

At  the  last  session  Congress  granted  a  right  of 
way  and  made  large  donations  of  land  to  the 
States  of  Illinois,  Mississippi,  and  Alabama,  to 
aid  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad  from  Chicago 
to  Mobile.  If  this  road  is  constructed,  as  I  trust 
it  will  be,  it  will  increase  the  social  intercourse  and 
commercial  interests  between  the  North  and  South, 
and  will  tend  to  consolidate  the  Union  more  closely. 
There  will  not  only  be  an  iron  band,  extending 
across  several  States,  but  a  bond  of  sympathy  ana 
interest  growing  out  of  the  increased  intercourse 
between  the  people  of  these  States,  which  is  far 
better.  This  was  one  of  the  reasons  which  in¬ 
fluenced  me  to  vote  for  that  bill,  and  which  would 
induce  me  to  vote  for  other  improvements  of  the 
same  character. 

The  marine  disasters  and  losses  on  the  Lakes, 
for  the  last  three  years,  have  been  as  follows: 

1848. . Loss  of  property,  $420,512;  of  lives...  55 

1849..  .do . dc .  368,171;.  ..do .  34 

1850..  .do. ....  ..do. ....  558,926;.  ..do . 395 


$1,347,609.  No.  lives.. 484 
Making  an  aggregate  loss  of  property  of  $1,347,- 
609;  and  of  lives,  474.  This  great  loss  is  mainly 
for  the  want  of  good  harbors  of  refuge  and  shelter 
on  the  lakes  between  Buffalo  and  Chicago.  The 
annual  loss  of  life  and  property  on  the  Mississippi 
and  its  tributaries  is  much  greater.  The  loss  of 
property  upon  the  lakes  and  rivers  cannot  be  less 
than  $2,000,000  annually,  which  is  annihilated — 
blotted  out  of  the  wealth  of  the  country,  for  the 
want  of  proper  care  and  attention  on  the  part  of 
the  Government.  I  am  aware  that  the  destruction 
of  human  life  upon  our  navigable  waters  is  not  en¬ 
tirely  chargeable  to  the  want  of  the  improvements 
provided  for  in  this  bill.  Fearful  losses  have 
occurred  by  fire  and  other  casualties,  but  this  does 
not  lessen  the  responsibility  and  constitutional  duty 
of  the  Government  for  the  losses  that  occur  by 
reason  of  snags  in  the  rivers  and  the  want  of  ade¬ 
quate  harbors  upon  the  lakes.  Shall  this  frightful 


I 


8 


destruction  of  human  life  go  on  and  increase  with 
the  increasing  business  and  population  of  the  coun¬ 
try  ?  We  have  the  means  m  the  Treasury  to 
remedy  these  evils  to  a  great  extent.  We  have  the 
constitutional  power  to  do  it;  we  have  the  exam¬ 


ples  of  Washington,  Jefferson,  Adams,  and  Jack- 
son,  in  the  precedents  to  which  I  have  referred,  for 
the  exercise  of  that  power,  and  I  trust  we  shall 
now  follow  those  precedents  by  the  passage  of  this 
bill. 


— 


Printed' at  the  Congressional  Globe  Office. 


X 


( 


